· expect our students to attend school on time everyday that the school is open, unless there is an unavoidable reason for not doing so, for example, illness.

· celebrate and reward students who achieve our expectations of a high level of attendance and those who have shown sustained improvement.

· share attendance information with parents and students, focusing on the link between attendance and achievement.

· promote high attendance and punctuality through assemblies and class discussion; always reinforcing the link between attendance and achievement.

· communicate attendance matters to parents via text, telephone; email, letter and through the school website.

Absence

There are two categories of absence from school
Authorised—approved
Unauthorised – not approved

If the school does not receive details as to why a pupil is absent it will always be unauthorised.  

Current legislation does not allow any absence due to holiday during term time.  If a parent feels there are exceptional circumstances that support a request for leave of absence in term time, then he/she will need to make an appointment to see the Headteacher to discuss the exceptional circumstances and, in addition, they must put the request in writing.  Only the Headteacher (or their delegate) can approve an absence from school and every request will be treated on an individual basis. 

If you wish to apply for a leave of absence for your child(ren) during school time, please complete the form at the bottom of this page and submit it to the Headteacher at least six weeks in advance of the period of absence.

Attendance and Punctuality

Regular attendance and excellent punctuality are the foundations for academic achievement and personal development.

Good timekeeping is a vital life skill which will help our pupils as they progress through their school life and out into the wider world. They establish a responsible attitude towards the opportunities available in school and underpin the basis for the world of work.

Attendance and punctuality are strongly linked to students’ well-being and safety.  If pupils miss school and, therefore learning, they may experience difficulty in catching up missed work. Late arrival to school is disruptive to pupils’ learning; to teaching staff and other pupils in the class. Pupils who arrive after school begins miss quality time with the teacher and vital information. 

Holy Family Primary School is proactive in promoting regular attendance and punctuality, ensuring that pupils take full advantage of the educational opportunities available to them. Regular attendance demonstrates a commitment to learning and the school community. Please ensure that you and your children support our school rules regarding attendance.

If a parent/carer takes a pupil out of school during term time, and that absence is unauthorised for more than 10 sessions in a 7 week period, this could result in the school requesting the Local Authority to issue a
penalty notice to the family.

Medical appointments

We monitor the amount of time missed due to medical appointments carefully.  Some hospital and specialist clinic appointments may require a student having time out of school.  Our expectation is that a minimum amount of learning is lost.  We will seek an explanation from parents where a whole day is missed for this reason.  Proof of medical appointments in school time must be provided for the school.  Routine, non-urgent, appointments must be made after school time and during the 12-week holiday.

Illness

Parents/carers are expected to contact the school on as soon as possible the first day of absence and each day thereafter, informing the school of the reason for the absence and the expected date of return.

If a message explaining absence is not received, every effort will be made to telephone the parent/carer to confirm the cause of the absence using our first day calling procedures.  If there is no notification then the absence will be recorded as unauthorised.